


Tomorrow is Another Day

by alleycatforthelulz



Series: Tomorrow Verse [1]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Gen, before careening off the deep end later on - Freeform, i guess im doing this huh - Freeform, in this house william afton has no rights - Freeform, so uh have fun i guess - Freeform, this doesnt apply to the fic (yet) just an fyi - Freeform, this fic will start off 'lighthearted' (as much as the source material can be)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:02:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23126722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alleycatforthelulz/pseuds/alleycatforthelulz
Summary: Meet optimistic and self-proclaimed scaredy-cat Mike Schmidt who's the "new" night guard at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. He's here to find out about his unknown father and maybe befriend some animatronics along the way. If anything, tomorrow is another day.AKA me? crossposting an old fic from ffn to gain motivation? it's more likely than you think.
Series: Tomorrow Verse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1662373
Comments: 7
Kudos: 47





	1. Night One: Another Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

>   
> _Ooh, Mr. Fazbear  
>  Please don't scare me  
> I just want to be your friend_  
> Please, Mr. Fazbear—Mandopony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **new notes circa march 2020:** yes, the song titles and lyrics are back from this thing was first written. yes, this is from that one vocaloid fnaf song. no, i will not stop bc cringe culture is nonexistent thank you

It was a cool August evening when a faded grey car pulled up to the parking lot of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. The car gave a few sad putters as the driver turned the key. It gave one last whine before falling silent.

The driver sighed as he rested his head against the steering wheel. Technically, his shift didn't start until twelve, but after his second week, his boss had hinted about possible overtime if he came in at ten. Of course, he got overtime on the weekends as well, but money was tight and he knew that the only mail he got was bills.

But that didn't mean that he wanted to go inside the restaurant. In fact, he still felt slight resentment over being called in the day after he was fired. A job was a job though. But Freddy's wasn't just a job. It was a connection.

He had never known his dad. To the best of his fuzzy recollection, it had only been his mom, him, and his cousin since he had been born. His cousin didn't live with them but he came by often enough that he thought of him more as an older brother than cousin. He could never remember a father.

His mom never brought it up, even when asked. He had always assumed his cousin knew nothing too, so he never asked him. It was only on the day before she passed that she had dropped one memorable hint.

"Maybe I should get a job at Freddy's," he had mused aloud. A newspaper sat on the dining room table with multitudes of job advertisements circled in red. "I mean, it's not that far away and there's free food."

"Your father used to work there," his mother had said softly from her spot at the sink. The dishes she held in her soapy hands had trembled for a bit as her eyes looked faraway in that moment. "He used to work at Freddy's."

He glanced up in surprise and opened his mouth to unleash a torrent of questions that had plagued him since he was six years old. One look at her face had him shutting it again.

"Okay."

They didn't speak after that and later she had left to go to the store for groceries. He didn't think anything of it, kissing her check and waving goodbye as she pulled out of the driveway. The collision, he was told, was instant and painless and she did not suffer. It didn't make the pain in his heart any better.

A week after, he applied to Freddy's.

Now here he sat in his car, five months going on six working at this cursed pizza joint and no closer to answers than when he started. He lightly banged his head against the steering wheel, jumping slightly when he accidentally hit the horn. Even five months at this place hadn't gotten rid of his natural jumpiness. It seemed to _increase_ it, if anything.

He raked a hand through his hair and tried to calm his racing heart. It was okay, it was only a horn. He jumped again when his phone buzzed in the passenger seat, indicating a call. Grumbling, he picked up the device and clicked the talk button.

"Hello?" he asked softly. He didn't want to take his bad mood out on the other person.

"Hey Mike," he heard his cousin's laidback voice. "I figured I call you right before you went in. You're still doing overtime?"

"It's not like I have much of a choice," he sighed, knowing where this was heading. Way back when Mike had first applied, he and his cousin had had a falling out. His cousin was against Mike working at Freddy's due to the rumors surrounding the chain, even when told about the vague hints his mom had dropped about his dad. Looking back on it, maybe he should have taken his cousin's advice. "There's no other night guard and besides, I need the money."

"If you would just let me help," his cousin muttered.

"No." It wasn't up for discussion. Mike had already owed his cousin enough for sticking around for so long already, even if said cousin argued that Mike didn't owe him anything at all.

"Fine, fine, be that way." Mike heard him take a deep breath then continue. "But you're still looking for another job, right?"

"Yes." It wasn't technically a lie since he _did_ have other jobs circled on his newspaper back home. It was just that it was the same one from five months ago and he had never bothered to follow through with calling them.

"Good, good…" A sigh. "Well, I guess you need to get to your job and I'm holding you up. Night Mike." They had agreed when Mike's job first started that they wouldn't say goodbye over the phone but good night instead. That way, Mike had to come say goodbye if he died.

"Night Fritz."

He clicked the end button and slipped the phone into his uniform pocket. His hand combed through his hair again before he dug out his contacts and eye drops. Placing a drop in each eye, he blinked at the sudden wetness. Then he took a new pair of contacts and placed one in each eye.

He glanced at the rearview mirror. Blue eyes stared back at him. Good.

Taking another deep breath, he counted to ten slowly in his head. Then, when he reached ten, he stepped out of his car and walked into Freddy's. The only sound that followed him was the faint honk of the horn as the car doors locked.

* * *

It was a Monday so the week started off easy. Mike flipped through the cameras quickly, being sure to check Pirate's Cove. It was one AM and nobody had moved off the stage yet and Foxy had yet to make an appearance from his curtains. It was only a matter of time though.

Mike leaned back in his chair and surveyed his desk. After his first week, he had cleaned the dirty thing by throwing out the litter and dusting the dust and cobwebs. The TV monitors he had placed in the supply closet, something Bonnie had been none too pleased about, while the fan had met an untimely end. He had no idea what to do with the huge speaker underneath it and, quite frankly, he had no desire to move the heavy thing anytime soon.

The cute little cupcake plush sat on the edge of the desk. Its eyes begged for it to be picked up. Mike happily complied. It was something of a stress reliever now, a pseudo stress ball for especially harrowing nights. Chica had said that his name was Custard the Cupcake. Even she agreed that the name was dumb and the cupcake had been dubbed Curt ever since.

He checked the cameras again. The curtains to Pirate's Cover still hadn't moved but Bonnie had wandered off. He heard light thumping coming down the west hallway and checked the hallway camera. Lo and behold, there stood the purple bunny, frozen after seeing the camera's watchful eye turn to him.

He clicked off the camera and the thumping resumed. It grew louder and louder until it stopped right outside his door. Without turning to look or press the light button, the doors slammed shut. A faint whirring noise could be heard from the animatronic's processors and silence stood for a moment.

"I heard about your guitar," Mike began. His fingers drummed against the desk making a steady beat to a popular song sung by Bonnie. He didn't notice.

A small grunt sounded through the door.

"I'm sorry that we can't fix it." Mike sighed. His fingers stopped drumming. "But hey, I'm sure that we'll find a mechanic any day now for you guys. So, keep your head up, okay?"

Bonnie, Mike had learned, was nothing like his stage persona. Instead of the loud and brass glory hog he was expecting, the bunny was actually rather quiet and withdrawn. He was always caught up in his thoughts and often sought the comfort of the supply closet for alone time. Mike didn't blame him. Even for an animatronic entertainer, dealing with so many screaming kids all day can get to you.

"…'sokay," Bonnie mumbled quietly back. Mike smiled.

"That's the spirit! Now we're really sure to get one…" Mike trailed off. He bit his lip as he thought about the vacant job spot. The company had already been looking for a mechanic for a little over a year when Mike had first applied. Foxy had broken down one day after a kid had been a little too rough in their mock fight. Mike hadn't been there but from what he had heard from Foxy, the kid had bawled their eyes out as management tried to assure them that Foxy wasn't hurt, just a bit tired from playing all day. Pirate's Cove had closed down that day as Freddy's had scrambled to find a mechanic. Foxy's condition got worse as there was no one to look after him and no one was found. It was starting to look a bit hopeless at this point. But his mother had always said to keep your head up and a smile on your face, so that's what Mike did.

"Thanks Mike," the bunny murmured. Mike stole a quick glance at his tablet. The power was down to 95%, which wasn't bad for about half past one. He could talk to the bunny a little longer.

"You're welcome." His voice was full of warmth as he replied. He meant what he said. The poor bunny needed to learn to look at the bright side a little more.

"The old bear says hi."

Mike laughed. "Tell Freddy 'hi' for me too, please? Oh, and that I found some new memes for him and I'll email them to him later."

Bonnie gave a displeased grumble, causing Mike to laugh even more. It still perplexed him to know that Freddy usually was leader in name only and that the rest of the animatronics really didn't care what he had to say; vitriolic best friends. That didn't dampen the bear's bright and boisterous disposition at all though and Mike had found himself in stitches on more than one occasion due to it. Especially when Mike introduced him to memes after Freddy had told him that he wished to be, "hip with the kids." Everybody but the two regretted his decision.

"He's already bad enough with the puns Mike, it's embarrassing." Mike could feel the eye roll.

"Don't you mean 'em _bear_ assing?'" he chortled. The bunny gave a huff as he walked off, no doubt to the closet to stew over coworkers and their un _bear_ able puns. Mike gave himself a mental high-five.

The door went up again, the clock read two AM, and the power was at 87%. All in all, it was shaping up to be a good night so far.

* * *

It had been the day after he had been fired when the animatronics changed. He had originally been fired for tampering with the animatronics AI's by unknowingly setting them to what he and Freddy now jokingly called '4/20' mode. Mike's night had been filled with terror and many close calls, especially towards the end when the power had gone out when he was only minutes away from six. It was only pure luck that Freddy had decided to play his music box the whole way through otherwise, Mike would have been rotting in a suit backstage right now. Being fired was just the icing on the cake.

Then the next day, he received a call. It was the head of the company, Henry Fazbear himself, asking him to come in for another night. Mike agreed because Mike was an idiot like that and he still had no answers for his unknown father. That started Mike's second week at Freddy's.

It went much like the first week but Mike began to see things. Posters would change on the walls and he swore that there was sometimes a golden bear on them, though he was often in the middle of clicking to the next camera when he noticed it so he had no way of knowing for sure. The words 'IT'S ME' similarly seemed to decorate the place. Then the animatronics spoke.

"Hello Mike," Freddy had said one day when the power went out. It was a case of déjà vu for the night guard as he remembered the last time he was in this situation. "I never got to introduce myself! So! I'm Freddy Fazbear, leader of this establishment and the one who has the honors of stuffing you in a suit! It was nice to meet you!"

The bear held out a hand. Mike, being the idiot that he was, shook it before he was pulled up and over the bear's shoulder. He remembered pounding on Freddy's back, pleading with the animatronic to please spare his life, he still had to find his father. It was the clock that saved him again as it chimed six just as Freddy was about to shove him into a suit.

Mike had never ran faster in his life than he did that day as he dashed out the doors of Freddy's. His drive home was shaky and full of spastic turns and he had trouble sleeping that day. When Henry called later to ask him if he would resume his job at Freddy's, Mike said yes. Because now that he knew the animatronics could talk, he became curious. They might have known something about his father and as his mother had always said, keep your head up and a smile on your face. It could be worse.

And because, if you hadn't guessed by now, Mike was an idiot.

Thus began Mike's next few months at Freddy's. He worked to befriend the animatronics, talking to them behind closed doors and asking about their everyday life. It took a while to get results, although Freddy and Foxy, strangely enough, seemed to warm up to Mike almost immediately, but here Mike was, almost six months later and having a normal conversation with his would-be killers who might still want to kill him but that could be swept under the rug right now.

(Fritz had teased that Mike was becoming unhinged because of his job. Mike wasn't sure how far off Fritz was.)

* * *

Mike wasn't visited again until near four. Chica stood in the east hallway and the door was brought down with a slam. Neither noticed.

"Hey kid," Chica grumbled as she set a box near the closed door. "Got somethin' for ya. Now what's with Bonnie fumin' in the closet for."

Chica, Mike had found, was exactly like her character onstage: rough around the edges and tomboy-ish. It was an odd choice for her character, especially for a children's restaurant, but the kids loved her. And, from what he could gleam, the company _had_ tried to 'girly-fy' her character once before switching her back over to the beloved tomboy she was today. She was like the cool big sister that let you ride her motorcycle with her when mom wasn't looking.

"Oh nothing," Mike replied airily. "A- _bear_ -rantly, Bonnie hates memes."

He grinned at the groan that came from the chicken. "Kid, you really need to learn when to stop."

Mike went to reply when he felt a crawling sensation on his hand. His eyes flickered down fleetingly then did a double-take. The scream that erupted from him sounded like bloody murder.

"KID! You alright?!" Chica cried, banging on the door.

Mike was too preoccupied shaking the tiny spider off his head and viciously stomping it into the ground to reply with anything other than the few swears that came out of his mouth. Bonnie, who happened to be down the hall, peeked in though he could only catch a glimpse before the doors went down.

"False alarm, just another spider Chica," the bunny called through the door before heading back to the closet. If Mike was actually listening, he would have heard the mutters of, "that's the fifth time this month," but Mike was eying the new albeit miniscule stain on the floor, daring it too move.

"For the love of Faz!" Chica huffed, making Mike jump. He had forgotten the bird was even there. "Don't scare a person like that."

Mike winced. "Sorry, it was—"

Chica rolled her eyes, Mike was sure of it even without seeing her. "Yeah, yeah, don't forget the door kid."

"Oh right." Mike quickly pushed the west door button as the bunny had already long vacated his spot. A look at his tablet said that the power was down to 66%. Yikes. Luckily, it was only day one and already past four AM. With no more unexpected visitors, he should be set for the night.

"I swear, it's like you want us to catch you," the chicken groused. Mike laughed nervously because, yeah, he had gotten a bit too lax in these last weeks.

"Anyways," she continued. "I'm headin' to the kitchen to finish up preparin' for tomorrow. Yer pizza is out here, probably cold now. See you later Mike."

"Later Chica," he called after her. Once he was sure she was gone, he clicked the door button.

Settling back down in his chair, Mike took a fast look through the cameras. He frowned at the empty Pirate's Cove and pushed the door button without looking away from the screen.

_BANG!_

He jumped slightly. Even after all this time, the noise still got to him.

"You okay Foxy?" he asked hesitantly. There was a low groaning sound from the opposite side of the door.

"I-I be fine lad," Foxy said shyly. Foxy was another odd one out. While he had never seen the fox's show when he came during the odd day, due to both the fox being out of order and his own schedule not being able to align, he had heard from other older workers. Stage Foxy was bold and daring, everything a pirate should be. Actual Foxy was shy and introverted and supposedly a bigger scaredy-cat than Mike. That argument had been settled when it was shown that Mike won through higher scream pitch. He still didn't know how to feel about that.

"If you're sure," Mike said. "Anyway, I've been wanting to talk to you. Since Bonnie's guitar just broke, management _has_ to find a mechanic now. I'm sure of it."

"L-lad, tha's fine a-and all but I'm certain t-that if anyone be comin' they w-would have been h—"

"Don't you finish that sentence," he broke in. The fox's sad tone went out to his heart and he couldn't bear to hear the animatronic speak like that. "Keep your head up Captain, help will come any day now."

The fox didn't reply but Mike knew that he was taking in his words. After a few minutes, he pushed the door button and leaned back in his chair. His tablet read close to five and 51% power remained.

Mike gave a content sigh. Just another normal night.

After all, tomorrow was another day.

* * *

Somewhere, deep inside the pizzeria, a music box began to play.

_Round and round the mulberry bush…_

They had been waiting for so long. It was almost within their grasp.

_The monkey chased the weasel…_

They only needed to give the night guard a little shove.

_The monkey stopped to pull up his sock…_

And he would be theirs.

_POP! Goes the weasel…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **new notes circa march 2020:** this thing prob needs to be rewritten BUT HEY! that's for _another day_ *badumtsh*
> 
> awful jokes aside, i _do_ have many plans for this fic, mostly bc it's one of the only fics that i have a storyline partially planned out in detail. it's just getting from point A (the _very_ beginning of the story, where we have to establish things _we_ already know but the characters don't) to point B (the juicy au lore bits that everyone is here for) that's the problem. and that's where yall come in! orginally, i stopped writing in general bc a.) college and b.) a severe lack of motivation to do _any_ of my previous hobbies. luckily im getting back into the swing of things but i am that basic who needs validation. please.
> 
>  **old notes circa december 2016:** I swore that I wasn't going to write this story and that I was going to update my other stories but then Custom Night came out and I was like :) I'm already known for starting projects that might not get finished.
> 
> While this story is definitely more humorous right now, it will get pretty dark later on. And some death may occur. But hey, that's all in a job for the night guards at Freddy's! I hope you like the animatronics, I tried giving my own take on them both on and off stage. I went back and as soon as I thought about my original song choice, Please Mr. Fazbear popped into my head right after I posted this chapter. I went back and edited it but I didn't get around to posting the edits until now. Sorry. :')
> 
> My inspirations come from the London Bridge AU by VanillaSpiders, the Upon AU by LadyGoddessofAnubis, and Can't Go Home Again by Mable, especially the little lyrics at the beginning of the chapter which were inspired by VanillaSpiders. They're all really good AU and really good stories and you should read them and not this trash. In fact, why don't you go read them right now? I really can't recommend them enough, especially for Mike fans. Anyways, have a safe week and see you next time.


	2. Day One: Monster Under the Bed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _A couple of hours  
>  But it's feeling like days  
> Now you're running out of power  
> Leave you mangled and winding away_  
> Mangled—Natewantstobattle

_The house was dark and empty. That didn't surprise Michael though. From what_ _**he** _ _had told him, it was to be expected._

_That didn't make it any less scarier._

_A flashlight was gripped in his hand with enough strength to hurt. The lighting in the room was dim and practically non-existent in the hallway. He had to have a way to scare away the monsters._

_Michael scampered to the left door first. After listening for a moment, he flicked the flashlight on. A figure ducked out of sight at the end of the hallway but he had already seen the too long ears._

_Abandoning his post, Michael immediately ran to the right door. Breathing could be heard and he immediately shut it. He held the doorknob for a few minutes as the breathing steadily grew louder and louder until it faded away._

_He was safe…_

… _but for how long?_

 _It didn't matter. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Michael wanted to help_ _**him** _ _._ _**He** _ _had been so nice to Michael and it was only fair that Michael do this for_ _**him** _ _. Michael could be a good boy for_ _**him** _ _._

_A flash of movement caught Michael's eye. The closet door was askance. He swallowed. That could only mean one thing._

_Gathering his courage, he took a step towards the unassuming closet. Then, in a rush of bravado, threw open the door and flashed the light quickly. However, nothing leaped out at him._

_Michael was confused. He was sure that Foxy had been hiding in there. But there was no animatronic to be seen, only a torn plushy resting innocently on the ground. The plushy was a Foxy one and the head appeared to be ripped off. It looked to be a chew toy of some sort as it had numerous bite marks on its head._

_A chill went up Mike's back._

" _I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I'm sorry. I'm s_o_r_r_y."_

 _Mike spun around. It was then that he realized that he had not paid attention to the monster underneath the bed. Stupid, how could he have been so_ _**stupid—** _

_What awaited him wasn't a monster, although it could be argued that it was worse than a monster. It was a little boy._

_Time seemed to freeze. Both of them looked at each other, neither expecting to see the other. Michael noticed that there seemed to be tear tracks stained on the boy's face, the same color as the boy's purple eyes. Strings looped around his wrists and bandages around his head. An IV stand and some flowers rested nearby._

" _You have pretty eyes," the boy said. Michael cringed before slamming the heels of his palm against said features. He hated his eyes. The other kids always made fun of him for them. He wished they were a nice color, like blue. Not an ugly color like—_

" _You have pretty eyes," the boy said again, sadder this time. Michael glanced up in surprise. The boy, noticing he had Michael's attention, continued. "I'm sorry for that._ _ **He's**_ _such a bad man but he makes such pretty things."_

" _No_ _ **he's**_ _not!" Michael argued hotly. He glared at the little boy. What did he know!_ _ **He**_ _was nice to Michael,_ _ **he**_ _cared for Michael,_ _ **he**_ _ **loved**_ _ **Michael**_ _—_

" _That's what I thought too," the boy whispered softly. Tears began to fall again, thick and purple. "That's what I thought too."_

_Michael felt guilt course through his body at the sudden emotion from the boy. He reached a hand out to touch the boy's shoulder. A static sound erupted when he did and he instinctively drew back._

_The boy looked up from his crying. The strings, now digging into his wrists, drew even more purple. "I'm sorry Mikey."_

_Sorry for what? The static grew louder and Michael recognized it as the chittering buzzes that the little ones made before the monster under the bed—_

_Freddy Fazbear roared to life in front of him. Michael screamed as he was grabbed and dragged under. He clawed at the carpet and kicked his kidnapper in an attempt to not be drawn into the darkness that resided under the bed. But it was no use._

_With a final scream, Michael Schmidt was pulled under the bed._

_And Mike Schmidt fell into his office._

_The rolly chair squeaked at the rough landing but Mike paid it no mind. It was two AM and he had to be vigilant. Bonnie was in the supply closet and a quick glance at the kitchen camera, or lack thereof, revealed Chica to be eating... something. Freddy was still on-stage. And Foxy—_

_For a moment, Mike was confused. Since when had Foxy been white and pink? He had never seen this animatronic before and it was now dragging itself down the hall towards him. It would have been terrifying if he wasn't so curious._

_He left the door open because… because… because? He didn't know. There was some foggy logic somewhere in his head. He wouldn't do this normally. Why was he doing it now? He didn't know._

_Staring at the dark hallway, he waited for the miscolored Foxy to leap out at him. He could hear the screech of metal against metal grow louder by the second. Children's laughter rang out around him. The smell of birthday cake filled his nose. He wasn't in the office anymore._

" _This was his saddest day."_

_The miscolored Foxy was in pieces in front of him. No, not in pieces. It was a mangled mess of parts but each fit the other and moved without a hitch. A garbled noise came out of its mouth. Maybe its voicebox was broken?_

_He bent down to take a closer look. It was convulsing now, eerily similar to the seizures he had seen his aunt have when he was younger. Now he was actually worried for the thing._

" _James, a-are you okay?" his mouth said. The voice sounded a bit higher-pitched than his normal one. He reached a hand out to steady the whining animatronic when its optics flashed on._

_The only word he could use to describe the emotion in those yellows eyes was hate. Pure, raw, unfiltered hate. The fox gave a threatening hiss. Its teeth gleamed in the light._

" _It's you," it growled. Its voice was both one voice and multiple different ones. Mostly, it sounded like a child._

" _James?" his not-voice asked. There was a waver and a feeling of unease—but no fear. This was his best friend. James wouldn't hurt him. "James, it's me. _."_

" _Liar," it—James—they snarled. "Liar, liar,_ _ **liar.**_ _Why do you lie? It hurt,_ _ **you said it wouldn't**_ _, it hurts, it hurts."_

" _Okay, that's enough." His not-voice sounded firm. "You're making a big scene and some of the kids are scared—"_

_It seemed his not-voice hit a nerve as they screeched and lunged at him. His mind couldn't process what happened. Teeth, an inch away from his face, were coated with red—blood, his blood. Pain, it was painful, oh god. And a flash, a flash of purple eyes._

" __!Oh god, someone come quick, the Mangle's got _!"_

* * *

Mike opened his eyes. He sat in bed for a moment, on the verge between consciousness and unconsciousness. He had never been the type to thrash around in bed while having a nightmare. He was simply asleep one minute and awake the other, with his mind in shambles trying to scramble to catch up.

The horror hadn't set in yet. That would happen later. For now, Mike continued to stare at the wall in front of him. He clenched and unclenched the hand in front of him and tried to remind himself that it was his.

A few more minutes passed before he finally heaved himself up. He clicked on the lamp on his bedside table. Mike had never been scared of the dark but what lurked inside it. Not that it made any difference to the kids in school. There was no such thing as monsters under the bed.

The light still felt safe.

He went to the bathroom and spent the next few minutes freshening himself up. It was in the middle of brushing his teeth that the dream came back to him, faraway and faint but still close enough to remember.

He spat out the foamy paste in his mouth. It was a dream that he had every so often, mostly after nights when Foxy made a surprise appearance. He could barely remember any of it, or what was said, but it always ended the same way: the animatronic leaping at him, a brief flash of pain, and then screaming. It wasn't a happy one but it didn't bother Mike too badly either. If anything, it frustrated him more than anything.

And at least it wasn't the _Golden_ dream. That was the worst. He rinsed out his mouth, swirling the water for a moment as he thought.

Mike knew that the Freddy's he worked at wasn't the first one or even the second one. No, it was the fourth time that the franchise had reopened. From what he could put together from staff stories and the internet, each opening had been followed by disaster.

The first opening hadn't been Freddy Fazbear's Pizza but Fredbear's Family Diner. The star character had been Fredbear who had basically been an older design of Freddy colored gold. There was also maybe a golden Bonnie but Mike wasn't very sure on the details. There was only information about the opening, about an accident that had occurred at the restaurant, and the closing.

The second opening after that had been Freddy Fazbear and Friends' Family Diner. "Under new management," the newspaper had boasted, "beloved characters are given new life as Fredbear and co is joined by Freddy and his gang of lovable animatronics." And in small print at the bottom, "Not responsible for possible injury that may happen at the establishment." This was where Fredbear and maybe-golden-Bonnie were joined by Mike's animatronics.

Mike wasn't very certain of what happened after that. There were various newspaper articles that all listed various different tragedies that happened, from a rash of children's disappearances to the flooding of the lower part of town after an increase in rain. The only thing Mike had been able to find about the restaurant after its opening was a small article that talked about how the place would be scheduled as closed for the next few days after one of the co-founder's sons had an accident. The article was purposely vague and unhelpful, with no names mentioned and no indication of what kind of accident it was.

There was nothing else said about the diner until the opening of the new restaurant, named Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, in 1987. It was the shortest lived one, opening and closing in the same year. This was where the bite of '87 happened, Mike was sure, but he could find little information about it and it all conflicted with each other. Some say that it was a child that was bitten, others a parent, and still others say it was an employee. Nobody could agree about the animatronic either and the answers ranged from Freddy to Chica to some animatronic called Balloon Boy.

There was one article, though, that chilled Mike down to the bone. Not because it was scary or over-detailed but because of how close it came to the few things he remembered from his dream.

It was a small piece, hidden away between the big ones that talked about Sports and the then-recent expansion of city hall. There was no title or name that claimed it and it was only two paragraphs long. It read:

"Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria is scheduled to be closed for the next few days after an incident with the animatronic named the Mangle by the staff. It is unclear what exactly occurred as there were no viable witnesses at the scene but a fourteen year-old boy was seen being picked up by an ambulance. Sources say that the boy was a recent hire on for the company to work the summer night shift and had been recently moved to the day shift. He has since been replaced with another unnamed young man.

What exactly happened that day at the up and coming restaurant? Many speculate that the accident was planned and that Freddy's is hiding a darker, more sinister secret. There have been reports that many night guards have been reported as missing a few months after their tenure at Freddy's, hinting at the hidden truth. Around a few years ago, several missing children were also sighted as last seen around the restaurant as well. What is Freddy's hiding? This reporter intends to find out."

That was the end of the article. There was no follow-up or, if there was, Mike couldn't find it due to the first not having a name. The implications that surrounded the reporter that never finished their story were enough to keep Mike up at days.

The next and newest articles were about the opening of the restaurant that Mike worked at now: Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. It had opened in 1993 and continued to this day. There were no accidents that plagued it or mysterious circumstances. It was just a children's restaurant with singing animatronics.

But there were rumors. They were whispered in the halls of the nearby school and used in the kitchens of overworked parents as conversation openers. Did you hear about Freddy's? About how, at night, the animatronics come alive and how the night guards always go missing? About how my brother's friend swore they saw blood leaking out of the animatronics? About those children who went missing years ago and were never found? Did you hear, did you hear?

Mike had never believed them, though they were fun to talk about. It was a small town urban legend, more fantasy than fact. New Jersey had its devil and they had their Freddy's. It wasn't until night one, when he heard the Phone Guy's first recording, that Mike began to consider that maybe there was more truth to the rumors than he wanted to believe.

Not that he would ever admit to it though. Fritz would be on him like a hawk and while he meant well, the man could be overbearing at times. Besides, the animatronics didn't even register as a threat anymore. They were more like co-workers who had the unfortunate tendency to stuff other co-workers in a nearby Freddy suit.

His cellphone gave a jingle from his bedside table. Speak of the devil.

From On the Fritz  
  
did u make it home ok?   
  


Mike rolled his eyes at the text. This was their routine. Mike would wake up, answer Fritz's text, try to prepare himself for the night, answer Fritz's call, and go to work. After work, he would come home and pass out for the next several hours until he woke up again for the next night. It wasn't a very interesting schedule but Mike at least got eight hours of sleep and a guaranteed conversation with another human being.

Shaking his head, he sent back an answering text.

To On the Fritz  
  
yes honey, i made it home ok like i do every night.  
  


It didn't take long for his cousin to reply.

From On the Fritz  
  
had to make sure sweetie, u never know when some robots might decide to stuff u in a spare suit. :'(  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
first, they're animatronics. and second, i've already told you they don't do that.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
tell that to jerry  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
who?  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
exactly. who is jerry? who WAS jerry? the world shall never know bc some robots stuffed him in a suit.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
animatronics. and you're just being ridiculous.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
am i mike? am i?  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
yes.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
fine, i see how it is. i'm playing rick astley at ur funeral.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
fritz you're 39 years old, why are you like this?  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
bc my dumb cousin took a job at cursed freddy's and doesn't know how to quit.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
we're not talking about this again.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
i'm worried.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
if you have nothing else to talk about, i'm going to ignore you.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
jeremy wants to meet you.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
let me guess, another so-called guard that the world will never know.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
yes and no. he's my roommate, you know the one.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
THE roommate?  
  
From On the Fritz the roommate.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
ok, why?  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
he just wants to talk. he's always heard of u but he's never seen u before.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
gee, i wonder why? maybe it's because you've never let us meet before due to "reasons."  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
ok, ok, i get it. it's just, it wasn't a good time. To On the Fritz  
  
and now is?  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
yes.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
ok, fine. when is this meeting supposed to be?  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
in a couple days from now. i have to see when ur schedules line up.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
ok, you do that. i'm getting ready so i probably won't answer anything until later.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
ok mike. keep ur head up.  
  
To On the Fritz  
  
and a smile on my face. yeah. see you later fritz.  
  
From On the Fritz  
  
later mike.  
  


Mike threw the cell phone on the bed. It bounced twice before coming to a stop. With a sigh, he sank down next to it.

He knew Jeremy. Or more accurately, he knew _of_ Jeremy. The fabled roommate, Mike was never sure if he really existed until now. Fritz had mentioned a few times of his roommate as Mike had grown up but never anything substantial. Mike could tell you that the roommate liked chocolate and peanuts but not chocolate peanuts, was an only child, and was a "awful, terrible driver who can't see two feet in front of him to save his life." But there was never a name or face to put it too. Just, "the roommate."

It was odd that Fritz was only now just mentioning the roommate's name and his wanting to meet Mike. It was suspicious but Mike trusted Fritz. The man had practically raised Mike with his mother and had never led him astray before. He just had to hope that everything would turn out okay. Keep his head up and a smile on his face.

He wondered how long that smile would stay on his as he readied himself for his next night at Freddy's. Before walking out the door, he gave the bed one last look.

There were no monsters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **new notes circa march 2020:** nothing much to add except i dabbled a bit into formatting this chapter which you can find how i did it [here.](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6434845/chapters/14729722) did this take way too long? yep. will i ever put myself through this kind of formatting torture again? *sideeyes my ok ko ut fic* probably. this chapter prob also needs to be rewritten bc it's just,,, exposition train about freddy's which isn't bad but it's a meh storytelling device. when will that rewrite come? who knows.
> 
>  **old notes circa 2017 (probably):** *looks at story outline* Huh, Jeremy wasn't supposed to appear until like seven chapters from now. Huh. Anyways, here's the next chap! I'm going to try to keep a regular schedule with this one but we'll see. It should be update around every Friday, give or take a day. And chapter one is updated, though that's because I changed the song.
> 
> Names are also very important in this fanfic! Be wary. Also, this fic does not follow canon exactly, like how Mike began working in March instead of November. This is either due to plot reasons or I just forgot. With lore this dense, mistakes are bound to happen. Either way, have a safe week and see you next time!


	3. Night Two: Crazy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _We're waiting every night  
>  To finally roam and invite  
> Newcomers to play with us  
> For many years we've been all alone_  
> Five Nights At Freddy's Song—The Living Tombstone

"Okay so I get that you're like… not actually alive, in a sense. But that doesn't make me crazy for talking to you, right?"

The cupcake in Mike's hand stared back at him with eyes that seemed to hint at exasperation. As much as stitched fluff could show exasperation, at least. Mike ranked it a solid five since the bright colors of the plush didn't do much to help it and he wasn't crazy.

Not in the least.

"I just, I mean, they're so nice and I'm pretty sure they're not trying to kill me anymore?" He ran a hand through his dirty mop of hair before pulling away with a grimace. Even though it was barely one AM, and only about five hours since he woke up, there were numerous tangles in his hair. He didn't even know why he bothered with it in the first place.

"I mean, Chica is always bringing me pizza, though I never eat it. Not because I think it's bad or anything!" He waved his hands in front of him in hurried denial before realizing there was no point. Besides, Curt was in his hand and that kinda defeated the purpose.

"And Bonnie and Foxy always listen to my problems, when they swing by." Mike had begun to pace now, Curt held out in front of him while his other hand grasped his chin in thought. "And Freddy is hilarious and loves anything I bring him or tell him. It's more like a sitcom but with more murder, if that makes any sense."

Mike finally stopped and turned his full attention to the cupcake in his hands. His eyes were searching as he gazed imploringly to the plush.

"That doesn't make me crazy, right?"

"Um… wow, that is…"

He jumped in surprise and turned his startled gaze to the door. Punching the light button, he nearly shrieked as Bonnie was revealed. The bunny appeared awkward with a look on his face that screamed that he did not want to be there.

"How long?" Mike squeaked.

"Since the," Bonnie waved his hands in front of him, mimicking the flustered moves from Mike earlier.

Mike hit the door button and then collapsed in his seat. He groaned into his hands. Great, just great Mike. Even the maybe/maybe-not killer bunny thought he was crazy.

"I don't think you're crazy, if that helps," Bonnie called weakly through the door. Mike huffed but turned to the door.

"I'm sure that I'm like half-way there, though," he glumly admitted. He felt the itch to check the cameras but he had everyone's schedule down tight. Except Bonnie's, it seemed, though a quick glance to the time informed him that it was one-thirty, the time the bunny usually visited. Maybe, had Mike not been so busy telling Curt his entire life story, then he would have noticed and saved everyone the embarrassment.

"Well, at least your arachnophobia is getting better?"

Mike raised an eyebrow. "Do you not remember yesterday?"

"…you're not crazy?"

Mike shook his head and sighed, not deeming an answer to the bunny. Eventually, Bonnie shuffled off and Mike opened the door. He glanced at the cameras, the time reading two-oh-eight. While he did have all the patterns and schedules down, they grew looser and more sporadic as the night wore on. Mike would never be able to explain the panic he felt when he found Chica in the west hallway instead of the east. Of course, that was a one-time thing they had assured but it had still given him the equivalent of a metaphorical heart attack.

"Head up Mike," he cheered himself. "It can't get any worse."

The sight of an empty Pirate's Cove seemed to mock him. Whirling, he leaped towards the button just as a flash of metal entered the corner of his eye. Shock took over as blue eyes met yellow ones before the steel door clanged down like a guillotine. The flash of fear in those yellow eyes ( _hateful yellow eyes stared at him_ _ **IT'S YOU**_ ) did not escape his notice and it was in those moments, as the door began to cleave its way through metal and fur, that Mike made the decision.

He opened the door.

Foxy collapsed with a whine, servos locking up from the severity of damage it had taken. Mike swallowed as he looked at the downed animatronic. Then, shaking his head, he knelt down and hauled the fox upright.

He didn't spot the immediate damage. It was hard to tell what wasn't there from what was already there. The fox was definitely in need of repairs. It was the sparking that finally drew his attention and he couldn't help but wince.

Foxy's left arm was broken. There was no two-ways about it. The door had begun to sever the wires and endoskeleton, cutting deep into the metal and leaving a large grove at the impact spot. It was a miracle it hadn't gone the whole way through. As it was, the arm was only hanging on by a thread. Too much movement could cause the whole thing to come completely off.

"Foxy, Foxy buddy," he said gently. The fox didn't respond, body still twitching in the aftereffects of the lock up. Hesitating for a moment, Mike steeled himself and lightly shook the robot.

Foxy gave another twitch before freezing completely. A high-pitched whine could be heard coming from his systems before his optics powered up. For a moment, Mike regretted stepping out of the room as Foxy fixed his eyes on him. Then he chided himself because his friend needed him.

And if he didn't, he would have been fired. Sometimes, separate interests just seem to collide.

"L-l-lad," Foxy garbled out. Mike flinched at the glitched voice. Something definitely broke inside the fox.

"H-hey Foxy," he responded feebly. Carefully taking the broken arm and placing it in the animatronic's lap, Mike climbed to his feet. "I need you to stay as still as possible for me, okay? I have to go see if we have anything to make a splint so your arm doesn't break any more than it has. Can you do that for me?"

The fox gazed at him with unreadable eyes before a weak smile appeared on his face. He nodded at the man and Mike scurried back into the office. The guard searched as quick as he could through the desk drawers but his only reward was frustration and a couple of dust bunnies. At the fox's hopeful look as he entered the hallway, Mike felt his heart sink.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't find anything," he murmured. A somber air overtook the atmosphere before Mike suddenly perked up. "But I think I know where I can find something!" Without giving Foxy a chance to respond, he dashed off down the west hallway.

Coming to a stop in front of the supply closet, it didn't cross Mike's mind about what he might find there. _Who_ he might find there. Throwing open the door, it finally dawned on the guard that this was Bonnie's favorite spot.

"Um… well this is awkward."

Really, it wasn't Mike's fault that his natural reaction was to scream. He was pretty sure that it was a perfectly rational biological process that all humans had built into them. Run into something scary, scream loudly and possibly alert more of said scary thing instead of running away. Evolution was just wonderful.

Back on stage, blue eyes flashed on. Somewhere, deep inside the pizzeria, a box painted to look like a present began to open.

* * *

To say Freddy was confused as he came online was an understatement. He was _paw_ sitively baffled (Faz, that was a bad one, he could do better than that). It was only night two for the week and he wasn't active until night three. The only reason he could come up with that he might be online was the screaming heard from the west hallway. Mike's screaming, to be exact.

" _Why does Mikey scream so much anyway?"_ Peter asked. Had it been anyone else, the question would be met with no response as no one would be able to hear it. After all, dead children tell no tales. But since this was Freddy, and everyone knew why it was Freddy only, Peter's question came through clear as a bell.

The bear rolled his eyes and scoffed. "I don't know Peter, it's like he thinks we're going to kill him!"

"… _isn't that what we were trying to do?"_

Freddy shook his head. "You know why."

Peter didn't answer.

The bear stretched, loosening up his servos from the stiff position they had been in for the last couple of hours, and then climbed off the stage. He couldn't hear screaming anymore so either Mike had calmed down by now or had fainted from sheer fright. It was hard to tell which way Mike would react sometimes.

* * *

Mike was an enigma wrapped in a soft and fluffy cotton candy exterior although the man himself would have protested this. The night guard was simply too nice and sweet and couldn't say "no" to anyone. Not that it was a bad thing but everyone knew that Mike was going to get himself in trouble someday because of it. Case in point, Freddy's.

Mike had worked an entire week plus weekend at Freddy's before getting fired. To any sane and not-Mike man, this would have been a sign that there really was someone watching out for them above. To Mike, it had left the man heart-broken. Freddy could still remember how Mike's boss had stopped the guard in the dining room, pink slip in hand, and had bluntly uttered the words, "You're fired."

Mike had stormed out of the restaurant by that point but Freddy could see the tears in the man's eyes. Yes, the _man_. Mike's tampering had finally, after his last shift, allowed them to see that Mike was not, in fact, an endoskeleton or something more… **sinister**. But it was too little too late, and Mike was fired. That left them all reeling, wondering what in the world they were going to do next. It seemed that they would never see Mike again and even though Freddy had not known the man at the time, he was sad to see him go.

But then, Mike had showed up the next night. The guard had paused in front of the animatronics and shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. Just as it seemed that he had thought better of whatever plan he had concocted, he took a deep breath and looked them all straight in the eye.

"Hi guys," he began weakly. He gave a slight cough before continuing. "It's me, again. Mike. Um… Just wanted to let you know I'll be working with you guys again. The big boss called and asked me to work another night so, uh, here I am." The guard spread his arms jokingly before jumping at the ring of the clock signaling it was eleven. He gave the animatronics one last look before scurrying to the office, stopping briefly by Pirate's Cove on his way there.

Like Freddy had said, Mike simply couldn't say "no," even when it came to life-threatening acts of stupidity. _Especially_ when it came to life-threatening acts of stupidity.

"… _maybe we can be his friends?"_ Nick had suggested. Chica looked fairly surprised at her child, as Nick was more than a little standoffish and didn't really care for other people. The boy, sensing her confusion, murmured in a small tone, _"He reminds me of Dad."_ As it was obvious that the words were meant for Chica only, the others politely ignored it. But Nick had set the ball rolling and now the other kids were adding to the idea.

" _It might be fun!"_ Peter had cheered. _"We haven't had anyone new to talk to in a really long time! Well, I mean, there's Phone but Phone's tied to Goldie-Gold and Goldie-Gold's never around."_ The child had made an irritated "hmph" at this and Freddy chuckled in amusement.

"Fredbear doesn't mean it," he soothed. "I'm sure he wants to be around more and he's trying his best to do so. Because who wouldn't want to spend time with us!"

Bonnie rolled his eyes and Jake could be heard groaning although that was drowned out by Peter and Freddy's excited chatter. Chica just shook her head and Nick remained silent. Everyone knew that once the two were started, they was no stopping them until they burned themselves out. Foxy peeked out of his cove and looked at them hesitantly. The fox made his way over when Bonnie beckoned him.

" _W-what are we talking about?"_ Jenny shyly asked. It was still a wonder that the little girl managed to be braver than the fox. But Foxy was a gentle soul that gathered his courage slowly, so the others didn't bother him about it.

"We're thinking of asking the night guard to be our friend!" Freddy had enthused, leaning forward to smile happily at the fox. Foxy had the look of frightened cat when confronted by an overly friendly dog.

" _Why would he want to be friends with us though?"_ Jake had finally butted in. Freddy turned questioningly towards Bonnie, with the latter shrugging and mumbling, "He's right," as Jake continued. _"We have tried to kill him the whole week. And how are we sure he isn't_ _ **him**_ _?"_

The restaurant fell silent at that, the previous cheery atmosphere gone cold. The animatronics looked uncertainly at each other. They didn't remember what **he** looked like as their memories had been updated since they last saw **him** and **his** face didn't carry over. But they knew one thing: **he** had purple eyes. Mike's eyes were blue, as blue as the sky Freddy had glimpsed through the doors of the pizzeria. They were kind and warm not at all like the cold ones that had so cruelly hurt them. Mike was safe.

"It'll be okay," the bear said. The others looked at him uncomfortably, clearly not as reassured but Freddy laughed. It was okay if they weren't certain because he was sure that everything would turn out fine in the end. "What's with the long faces boys and girls? Smile, you're the face of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza!"

The tension broke. Bonnie snorted. "Don't you mean _you're_ the face of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza?" As Freddy sputtered and tried to regain some level of confidence, the rest just chuckled, smiles on their faces. After all, they were the face of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza.

* * *

Now Freddy trudged down the west hallway in search for the distressed night guard. He was betting it was a spider that scared the man while Peter betted it was one of the animatronics, albeit unintentionally. It was the sight of Foxy, slumped and broken on the ground, that drew them short.

"What happened?" he asked. Bonnie gave him a glance before looking back at the fox while Mike jumped from where he had been kneeling by Foxy. The downed animatronic gave a whine at Mike's sudden movement and the guard swiftly apologized and set back to work. He was making some sort of splint from what Freddy could see.

Mike worked in silence for a few minutes as he set the splint in place. He murmured something quietly to Foxy before grabbing the fox's broken arm and straightening it. Freddy winced at the creaking sound from the metal appendage and Foxy's shriek as his servos began to lock up. Mike looked pained but continued to keep the arm in place, setting the splint quickly. The fox's shaking began to remind him too much of his dream.

When he was finished, the man leaned back on his heels. Everyone took a moment to survey the damage to the fox. Without speaking, Freddy gently pulled Foxy to his feet and began to help the animatronic to his cove, letting the fox lean most of his weight on the bear. Mike frowned as he watched them go. He felt helpless and worthless being unable to help his friend in his time of need.

Bonnie cleared his throat. Mike flinched in response but looked questioning at the bunny. He gestured to the door, shaking his head as the guard stared at him in bewilderment. The bunny sighed and grabbed the man's shoulders (he ignored the way Mike had tensed up, eyes wide and breath caught in his throat, as he finally realized that he was out in the open, he was _out in the open_ ) and dragged him into the office.

Placing the guard gently in his chair, he reached for the cupcake plush Mike was so fond of. What had he and Chica named it? Carl? It didn't really matter since with the way Mike was squeezing it, it looked like the poor thing would survive. The guard's breaths were short and fast and Bonnie knew enough about child care to tell when one was having a panic attack. Not that Mike was a child, even if the guard did act like one at times, but that was beside the point.

"Mike, you have to breathe," Bonnie muttered, trying to keep his tone gentle. He was never all that great with kids, despite what his adoring fans would lead you to believe, and situations like this were an especially weak point for him. He had to try for Mike though. "Count to ten with me, okay, and try to breathe every time we reach it. Can you do that for me?"

Mike nodded shakily and his breathing began to slow. The next thirty minutes were filled with Bonnie's attempts at helping the guard calm down and Mike trying to steady his breathing. There were a few hiccups along the way and Mike almost went into a full meltdown when Bonnie had accidentally bumped into the desk but things were quieting down.

It took a few more gasped breaths before Mike could form the words he wanted to say. "Get out." At Bonnie's wince, he backpedaled. "I don't—not like that but I just, please, space. Sorry."

"You don't have to say sorry, grow some fazing backbone" Bonnie muttered. The bunny paused to push the door button for the poor night guard and then he left. Mike let out a sigh of relief.

The man knew that the animatronics meant no harm with their words or actions. At least, he didn't think so. Bonnie couldn't really express his feelings without some form of barbed comment so Mike knew that was just the bunny's way of telling him that Bonnie would gladly leave if Mike asked him to and that it wasn't Mike's fault at all. Or maybe Mike was imprinting on the animatronic. Hmm.

The guard huffed to himself. He wasn't crazy, as he had proven earlier with Curt, but Mike knew that at times he could be a bit… odd. He sought interaction with a dead guy on the phone and his maybe killers every night, he saw hallucinations of a golden animatronic and the words, "IT'S ME," and talked to a plush cupcake out of desperation. Definitely not crazy. Paranoid, maybe, but not crazy.

He passed the next hour doing little to nothing. He had opened the west door about five minutes after Bonnie left and had been sitting in his seat trying to settle his thoughts.

A knock from the east hallway had him jumping (faz, how many times had he done that tonight?). Pushing the light button revealed Chica, who waved at him. Mike wanted to be left alone for now but the chicken had probably sought him out because the others were busy with Foxy. With a groan, he motioned for her to go on.

"What happened kid? I was jus' in the kitchen makin' some pizza but then I hear ya screamin' yer head off and figured it was a spider or somethin'. And then all of a sudden I hear Foxy, of all people, screechin' his head off and when I come out the kitchen Freddy is missin' from the stage and—"

The guard held up a hand to stop the chicken's rambling. He messaged his head gingerly, already feeling the oncoming of a headache. "Foxy, he, he-uh-he got in but the-the door was closing and I-I c-couldn't stop-stop-stop-stop-stop—"

"Hey Mikey, it's okay," Chica soothed. She hadn't moved from her original position in the window, though, which Mike was grateful for. He took another deep breath and scrubbed his face with his hand. It was okay, he could do this, what was he getting all upset about? They weren't going to yell at him or be disappointed in him or anything like that. At least, he didn't think so. There were a lot of things Mike didn't think would happen but he could never really take that chance.

"Come on, I won't be mad," she tried, switching tactics. It was something the animatronics often said to children when they were afraid of getting in trouble. It didn't escape Mike's notice judging by the soft laugh that came from the guard.

"Sorry, I don't know what's wrong with me," he apologized. It seemed that he was upsetting everyone tonight, from breaking Foxy's arm to snapping at Bonnie to breaking down at Chica. He hadn't done anything to Freddy yet until, with a sinking heart, he realized that the bear shouldn't even be active tonight. Ruined Freddy's rest was added to the list.

"Don't say sorry for something that ain't yer fault," Chica scoffed. Honestly, Mike was too nice for his own good and the chicken worried that once he left their little world, he would be eaten alive by the much bigger one outside.

Mike's laugh startled her. "That's what Bonnie said too but in a Bonnie-way. Told me to grow a backbone."

Chica rolled her eyes at that but couldn't help but smile. Leave it to the socially-awkward bunny to somehow make encouragement sound like an insult. "Now what really happened kid?"

Mike sobered up so fast that it was like getting whiplash. His smile turned into frown that he then tried to erase with a fake smile. "Like I said, Foxy g-got inside and the door was closing and I-I didn't mean to hurt him. His-his arm was broken and I had to make a splint so it w-wouldn't break anymore and I had to go to the s-supply closet for that and then Bonnie was there, of course he would be there, that's his favorite spot and like an idiot I screamed and Freddy woke up and—"

"Now ya hold yer horses," Chica broke in. Making a 'calm down' motion, she waited for Mike to catch his breath. "Good, now if I have this right, Foxy broke because of the door and then when ya went to find somethin' to help fix him ya ran into Bonnie. Which lead to Freddy wakin' up."

Mike nodded. "Yeah, and then we fixed Foxy as much as we could and then Freddy took him to his cove. Bonnie stayed behind and, uh, helped me with some… stuff." He didn't really want to admit that he had a full-blown meltdown but from the look in the chicken's eyes, she already knew. "And then he left and I've been sitting here trying to wrap my head around everything. And then you showed up."

"Okay." Chica looked contemplative and Mike was tempted to ask her what she was thinking but she beat him to the punch. "So now that ya know we're not goin' to stuff ya in a suit, will ya be comin' out of the office?" There was a hopeful look in her eyes that made Mike stomach squirm in guilt.

Mike knew that the animatronics were nice and friendly. They proved that over the last few months with their attempts at friendship. The Foxy incident seemed to support this too. They had every chance to stuff him in a suit, hell, _Foxy_ could have still killed him if he really wanted to. But they didn't and that said a lot of things to Mike. A lot of things that he wanted to act on but just couldn't right now.

"I-I don't think so Chica." When her face fell, the guard hurried to finish. "B-but!" The chicken looked at him with hopeful eyes again and he swallowed down the nausea brought on by guilt and fear. "Maybe t-tomorrow. I just don't feel up to it tonight."

Chica nodded slowly as she absorbed the information. "Okay kid, jus' know that we'll be 'ere for ya." She paused before adding, "Keep that smile on yer face."

Mike stared at her in disbelief. How did she know—

"Yer the face of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza."

Oh. Right. He gave a nervous laugh but his smile was genuine. It seemed it was contagious too since Chica returned it with a grin of her own. The six o'clock bell rang, startling them both, and they stared at each other a moment before bursting into raucous laughter. When it had died down, they parted ways with small chuckles and a wave. Mike waited for Chica to take her place on-stage before dragging himself out of his office and into a dining room chair to wait for his boss.

But his head was held up high and a bright smile was on his face.

* * *

Leonardo did not consider himself an imposing man. Despite his childhood nickname being Leo, he was nothing like the fierce cat. A stick could be more intimidating than him. But with how Mike cowered beneath him as he clenched his teeth in anger, it did cross his mind that there were times that he could be proven wrong.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN FOXY'S EVEN MORE BROKEN?!"

Like now, for instance.

"S-sir, I'm sorry but it really was an a-accident," the night guard stammered. He had his hands held protectively out in front of him, like he was expecting an attack. Leonardo huffed at that but began to calm. He honestly should have expected this sooner but it was one of those things that crosses your mind but you don't dwell on it.

"Okay Schmidt, I believe you." He rubbed a hand across his face and ignored the exuberant "thank you sir!" that came from the guard. The manager held up a finger. "But!" Mike quieted down instantly. "If anything, and I mean _anything_ , happens again, I don't care how good you are with the animatronics, you're _fired_. Got it?"

Mike nodded his head so fast Leonardo worried for a minute that his head would fall off. "Yes sir, thank you sir, I'll do better sir—"

"Alright, alright, now get. You still have to come in for your shift tonight."

The guard rambled out a few more thank you's before he eventually left. He watched as the man ran into one of the morning staff on the way out, a waitress by the name of May if he remembered right, and made a fool of himself through his hurried gestures and apologizes. May waved him off with a blank stare but that was just May for you. Odd girl but she did what she was supposed to and never complained. But despite how odd she was, Mike himself was odder yet.

Leonardo frowned. It wasn't Mike's personality, although that was fairly weird in its own right too, that had struck him as peculiar. No, it wasn't anything about Mike that made him odd but who Mike reminded him of. Someone who he couldn't remember, no matter how hard he racked his brain. It must have been someone at the old location as he was only placed in the manager position after that old place had shut down. He had worked there as one of the waiters and had slowly climbed his way up the ranks. When the old manager was fired after the, uh, accident, Leonardo had been the one hired to be the manager. So it must have been someone from the old place but the who still escape him.

Leonardo shrugged. What did it matter to him when today was a new day. He had business to take care of and this kind of pondering could be left for later.

Tomorrow was another day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **new notes circa march 2020:** i dont think i changed a single thing this chapter which is certainly something. ~~mostly bc at this point i cant be bothered to read through it again.~~ anyway, that tumblr post i mentioned in my old notes can be found [here](https://alleycatforthelulz.tumblr.com/post/155600805946/so-i-caved-and-decided-to-post-this-as-a-special) (yes i know it has 0 notes yes im sad about this but once again i am asking you to--) ahem, but yeah i need to rework some descriptions bc certain things _have_ changed about the characters but for the most part their key personality traits have stayed the same. (also my search bar is broken bc tumblr is garbage so im sorry in advance)
> 
>  **old notes circa 2017 (probably):** Sorry for updating so late! I was super busy around the holidays and had to get a lot of stuff done. I'll try to keep up this kinda schedule but please forgive me if the updates take a little while. Meanwhile *waves toward tumblr blog* if you check out my tumblr, I should have some stuff about the night guards (yes, from Mike to dear ol' Eggs) out a little after I post this! There a bit of spoilers but that's mostly towards personality and such. I blocked all the big ones. I also might consider releasing some more info over there as this fic goes on. My tumblr is the same names as my FFN account so it should be super easy to find me. If you have any questions, feel free to ask! Have a safe week and see you next time!


	4. Day Two: Open Your Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Find an inner strength within  
>  Stay calm, stay calm  
> If I've learned one thing it's that:  
> Don't respond to craigslist ads_  
> Stay Calm—Griffinilla

_Mikey was excited by the chatter around him. It was his first time to be invited to a birthda_ _y party, even if he didn't know whose it was. It had to be some kid in his class and though he felt guilty for forgetting, the joy of being invited quickly erased it._

_But something was confusing him. Mikey glanced around the room, ignoring the faceless adults and children wearing various masks. Where was the birthday boy? He was sure the kid was a boy because he remembered one of the waiters mentioning it was a special day for a special boy._

_He skipped past two kids wearing a hippo and bird mask. As he did, he couldn't help but listen in to their conversation._

**_XLMW AEW LMW WEHHIWX HEC._ **

_Mikey giggled. That was silly! Birthdays were happy days and for birthday boys (and girls!) they were the happiest! Those two didn't know what they were saying. He moved on, eager to get to the stage that stood in the center of the restaurant. He didn't know how he could have missed it before._

_Crying grabbed Mikey's attention. He turned left and right, trying to find where the sound was coming from. He frowned when he realized that he could not find the upset child. Wasn't it the security guard's job to help calm and protect children? He was doing a lousy job at it._

_But he wasn't on the clock right now, a small voice reminded him. It wasn't Mike's fault if he couldn't find the kid in the first place. Wait, that was wrong. Mikey shook his head. As if Mikey could ever be a security guard! He jumped at his own shadow and cried when left alone in the dark. How could he ever protect anyone like that?_

_A crawling sensation went up his skin. It felt like someone was watching him. Mikey froze and slowly turned his head to the right. There was a small hallway that led to some backroom and he could see a group of kids standing there. They had weird masks on that looked like Freddy and his friends but weird colored. Off to the side, facing away from them, stood a single kid that looked like he had been crying, if Mikey could see his face behind the frowning mask the kid wore._

_"_ _G-guys, where are you?" the kid called out. "Theo? Sarah? J-James?"_

_That voice, that name, it all sounded familiar to Mikey. He didn't know why. The boy looked fourteen years old, at the most. Way too old to be hanging out with Mikey. But he found himself moving towards the boy before he could even consciously decide on it._

_"_ _Hello, are you lost?" Mikey chirped. The boy yelped in surprise and seemed to trip over his own feet as he crashed toward the ground. Mikey gasped and began to spew apologizes. He didn't mean to scare the weird kid, honest! He just wanted to be friendly since the boy seemed so sad._

_The kid gave a groan and sat up with a wince. Mikey apologized again because he didn't mean for him to get a boo-boo. The boy smiled at him or Mikey thought he did because the frowning mask still covered his face._

_"_ _I-I'm okay," the boy said weakly, like even he wasn't convinced. Mikey frowned and shook his head at the boy, the action startling the other one. Mikey puffed up his chest and gave him the best glare he could muster._

 _"_ _Mommy said that it's not good to lie," Mikey stated with the confidence only a six year-old could have. The other boy fell silent for a moment, surely to take in Mikey's profound words of wisdom. Mommy was going to be very proud when Mikey told her about this today._

_A laugh caught Mikey by surprise. The kid had doubled over in a fit of laughter and if there were still unseen tears falling from his eyes, they were ones of mirth. Mikey scowled at him and crossed his arms with a 'hmph.' Why was the other boy laughing at him? It was true that lies weren't good and the boy had obviously told a lie._

_The kid quieted and reached out a hand to ruffle Mikey's hair. Mikey didn't notice how much larger the hand was now or how the kid seemed to have grown in height or how he was now in a Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria uniform. Mikey didn't notice any of this except for the fact that the weird man was now messing up his hair, which Mikey voiced great complaint to._

_"_ _Thanks kid," the man said and although Mikey couldn't see his eyes, he could see the big smile on his face. Mikey grinned back at him, even though the man had messed up his hair._

_The sound of upbeat music drew their gazes as the center stage began to light up. Neither noticed how the restaurant seemed to change and mold itself from tiles and plaster to polished wood. The people around them had older clothes and there were no arcade games in sight. It seemed like the restaurant had taken a trip to the past. But neither had noticed and they continued on to the stage._

_There was a cluster of kids in front of the stage, not unlike the group Mikey had glimpsed in the hall. He glanced back to see if they were still there but the hallway had mysteriously vanished. Shrugging to himself, Mikey walked closer to the strange group with the weird man on his heels._

_There was a small kid with a crying mask in the center of the group and four other kids surrounded him. The other kids all had masks of Freddy and his friends although they appeared nightmarish in this situation. A handful of other kids stood to the side, clearly against whatever was happening but allowing it to happen anyway._

_Mikey stopped short. One of the kids on the side had caught his attention. The boy was wearing a scary Freddy mask but it was gold in color instead of Freddy's usual brown. Mikey could spot red hair from behind the mask and he smiled._

_"_ _Fritz!" he called, waving his arm frantically in order to grab the other's attention. The weird man's breath caught and Mikey could him mutter, "Fritz…?" under his breath, but he ignored him because here was Fritz, his favorite cousin! He was also Mikey's only cousin (that he knew of) but that didn't matter because Mikey loved Fritz. But the boy in the golden Freddy mask didn't turn towards him and instead seemed to look around, as if searching for somebody._

 _"_ _Fritz!" Mikey tried again. Fritz had to have heard him this time and would instantly know that it was Mikey and come find him and take him to the birthday party that Mikey had forgotten about. But again, the boy in the golden Freddy mask did not respond like Mikey wanted him too. It was when the boy pushed the mask up that Mikey was met with utter confusion as the boy stared at him with scared blue eyes._

 _"_ _You're not Fritz…" Mikey muttered when a scream and the harsh sound of something being crushed grabbed his attention. He turned to the center stage where all he could glimpse was a yellow and red blob before a hand was placed over his eyes._

 _"_ _Don't look, don't look, don't look…" the weird man chanted near Mikey's ear, pulling the boy close to his chest. Mikey kicked and squirmed because he didn't know this weird man and Mommy had told him about strangers. But as more screaming started and the man's words took on a frantic tone, Mikey ceased his struggles, scared about what was happening outside the blackness that was his vision._

_Then just as suddenly, there was no hand over his eyes or comforting grip around his body. He was floating and the only reason he couldn't see was because he was floating in darkness. He flailed around and tried to ground himself. But as there was nothing to ground himself on, Mike continued to float on._

_Eventually, Mike bumped against something cold and hard. His hands shot out and gripped the unknown object to keep from floating away. He looked down to find his desk. The clock read four AM and Mike sat down on his chair. It was Saturday and he had been promised overtime if he continued to come in on the weekends. While Mike was nervous, as the last Saturday had been an absolute nightmare and Sunday was even worse, he was sure he could make it out tonight._

_The cameras were brought up. Freddy was in the dining room along with Chica. Foxy was barely peeking out of his curtain, nothing to worry about right now. Bonnie was missing until a quick peek of the west hallway showed the bunny's figure. And in the west hallway, there was a poster of a_ _**G_O_L_D_E_N_ B_E_A_R** _

_Mike froze as dread filled his heart. He didn't notice the camera screen going dark or his surroundings becoming a blur. He knew how this would end and he desperately wanted to extend his time from the End of the Story._

_"_ _It's me." The voice was metallic and had a bit of a reverb._

 _"_ _It's me." The voice was small and childlike and full of tears._

 _"_ _It's me." The voice was as familiar as his own as if he had heard it b_e_f_o_r_e._

_He couldn't stop his head from moving up. He couldn't stop his gaze from seeing the corroded gold suit with its mysterious rust stains. He couldn't stop the monster under the bed. He couldn't stop the monster in front of him from leaning forward._

_"_ _It's me," they breathed. "Save them."_

 _"_ _I can't."_

_He couldn't stop the monster's teeth from grinding him to bits._

* * *

Leonardo swore that Mike was going to die at an early age of a heart attack with how jumpy the man was.

He had called an emergency staff meeting this morning and the guard was the last to arrive. He felt slightly guilty, as he knew that the man had probably been asleep, but they wouldn't be in this situation if not for Mike in the first place. The waiters and waitresses lined the front rows of the audience, ages ranging from fresh out of high school to a little under forty. After that, the cooks, technicians, janitors, and the day guards filled in the remaining rows.

The door creaked open to signal the night guard's arrival and the room seemed to turn as one to stare at the tardy man. Leonardo had to stifle a laugh at the squeaking sound that escaped Mike as he hurried to take a seat. With that amusing interaction out of the way, it was time to get down to business.

"As you all know, Foxy has been out of commission for a while now. It may be a bit longer now due to new recent damage."

Mike squirmed in his seat at that. Nobody had to turn to look at him to know why this was. He wondered if he could cease to exist through shear willpower alone. Of course, it wasn't that easy.

"It's now that some budget cuts might be made unless we can get that fox working again. The revenue we have lost from not having Foxy's show is starting to tip us into the red area people. We might also start making other 'cuts' as well. Rest assured, nothing is final yet but we really need a mechanic."

Leonardo paused. Searching through the crowd, the manager met Mike's eyes. Mike swallowed.

"We really need a mechanic."

_Oh god, he's telling me to find a mechanic._

Mike was still trapped in his seat, the meeting having just been disbanded mere moments ago, and replaying his boss's final words in his head.

"We really need a mechanic."

* * *

_He's definitely telling me to find a mechanic._

Mike didn't want to worry about finding a new mechanic. Fighting off probably-not-evil animatronics at night was enough worry for him. However, he also didn't want to worry about budget cuts and what that would do for his bills. Or any other 'cuts' for that matter.

A hand waving in front of his face snapped him out of his funk. And out of his seat. As Mike whipped around, snickering met his ears. He already knew who it was.

"Jeez Mike, jumpy much?"

Mike breathed a sigh of relief before frowning at the waiter. "Brendan, you k-know I don't do well with surprises."

"You don't do well with a lot of things Mike," Brendan shot back but he ceased his teasing. "So, what did you do this time?"

"W-why does it have to be me?" Mike defended himself, drawing his body inward in an attempt to look smaller. "I d-didn't do anything."

Brendan held up a finger. "One, you're stuttering pretty bad Mike. You can't lie to save your life. Two—"

"—you were the cause of the Custard the Cupcake massacre of twenty-ten," May broke in monotonously, her blank expression never wavering. Mike jumped again, he was a rather jumpy guy, and turned to her.

"That wasn't my fault and you two know it!" he wailed. Brendan snickered again.

"Yeah, but Leonardo doesn't."

May nodded.

Mike stared at the two servers with despair. He knew exactly who was to blame for that incident and he was staring at the two devils right now. He knew he should have ran away the moment May's lifeless eyes had sight of him but it was like a fly realizing a second too late that it was caught in the spider's web. The background music of Brendan's snickers did nothing to reassure him of this fact.

It wasn't like he didn't like the two, it was more of that he lived in constant fear of what they would do next to inadvertently screw Mike over. They were around Mike's age, maybe a little younger, which meant that they were still in that teenager-esque stage. Teenagers _terrified_ Mike.

So when Brendan wound an arm around Mike's shoulders and May started to guide them towards the kitchen, Mike knew his fate was set. There was no escape.

"So what happened Mike?"

Staring up at the Cheshire-like grin that stretched across Brendan's face to the dimly interested but still empty expression that May wore, Mike wondered if he had accidently stumbled into hell sometime between when he first stepped into Freddy's and now. He wouldn't be surprised if Freddy's was hell, to be honest. At least it paid better than Dairy Queen.

* * *

After that interrogation was done, all that was left was to check on Foxy. Mike shuddered again as he remembered Brendan's mocking laughter at Mike's accidental damaging of the fox animatronic. May had watched the whole thing in silence. He didn't know which was worse.

Now he slipped into Pirate's Cove with the hope that Foxy was more companionable than the company he had just left. Pirate's Cove was dark and gloomy when he stepped inside and he could barely spot Foxy amidst the props he was hiding behind. The fox was like Mike in the sense that social interaction was seen as something to be highly frightened and wary of.

"Foxy," Mike softly called. It was a fifty-fifty chance that the animatronic was shut down for "daytime mode" or that the animatronic had "just happened" to not obey this command. The fox's ears twitched and Mike knew it was the later.

"L-lad, w-wha-what ar' ye doin' h-here?" Foxy's voice came out mangled and weak. Mike winced. Yeah, the fox was still in bad shape.

Mike shrugged as he carefully sat down across from the animatronic. The internal panic at being so close to one was still there but, with the daylight at his back, he could tamper it down to a bearable amount. He still didn't think he could handle any of them touching him, though.

"I thought I'd come see you." Not a lie but also not what Mike really wanted to say. "I figured it was lonely in here, especially now that you have to deal with," Mike gestured to Foxy's arm, " _that_ and all. Sorry Captain."

Foxy shook his head at that. "I-it's not l-li-like tha' lad. Aye, y-ye did cau-cause the harm but ye d-d-d-didn't _mean_ it."

Mike gave a slow nod at that and silence fell. It wasn't an awkward silence, though, it was a comfortable one. They didn't need to talk to enjoy each other's company and the dim lighting of Pirate's Cove gave the place a tranquil atmosphere. Mike started to nod off without realizing it. He was supposed to be resting during this time, after all. He knew that it was beyond stupid to fall asleep this close to one of his would-be killers but then Mike's eyes closed and he had no more say in the matter.

* * *

_Something, something was wrong. There was faint tickling at the back of his mind, let me in, let me in. It was wrong, wrong, let me in, wrong, let me in, let me in, let me in—a closed door stood in front of him, let me in, let me in, LET ME IN WRONG_

_Mike opened the door. There was nothing there. He peeked out and glanced left and right but there was only inky darkness. He gave a shrug to himself when something feather light brushed against his back. His entire body seized but he turned to look behind him anyway._

_A white face loomed behind his shoulder. Pinprick white eyes bore into him with a measured indifference. A small hand grasped his as he switched his gaze back down to the crying child. Purple strings enveloped them as he took this scene in. Surprisingly, he didn't scream._

_"_ _Thanks_ **for** _letting_ **us** _**out."** _

_"_ _No problem," he replied instinctively before the words registered. Oh. Letting us_ out _. That's why it felt so wrong earlier. They weren't saying let me in, there were saying let me out._

_The child clung to his leg with a smile that didn't quite reach her tearful eyes. "Don't worry Mikey, we're gonna have lots of fun."_

**"** **Tons,"** _the white mask added. Fabric wrapped around Mike's eyes with the sensation of drowning without drowning, if that made sense._ **"But first…"**

 _**"** _ _**You need to open your eyes."** _

* * *

When Mike woke up, the first thing he noticed was the line of drool coming from his mouth. The second thing he noticed was, as he wiped away the drool, was the bell resounding through the building and announcing the beginning of the night shift. The third thing he noticed were the yellow eyes that watched him less than three feet away.

The final thing he noticed was the ghostly little girl that crouched next to him in concern. She wore a blood-stained blue dress and her eyes were emptier than May's—as in, literally empty. He could see the through her to the wall behind her.

 _"_ _Is he o-okay?"_ she asked, turning towards Foxy as Mike continued staring. _"He's been like th-that for f-five minutes now."_

This time, Mike did scream. Then he passed out. We can't all be courageous warriors who can take in the fact that little ghost girls existed. Mike simply took one for the team and spared everyone the long explanation that would come—but, seeing as it was now night and this was technically supposed to be a day chapter, that would come next chapter. For now, Mike gratefully sank under the darkness of the chapter ending.

* * *

Somewhere, deep inside the pizzeria, an empty present box laid open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **new notes circa march 2020:** this chapter has the biggest and smallest change which is the crying child.... and idk how many people will catch it bc it's a small detail when written but a pretty big detail with the story. if anyone has any guesses and gets it right, kudos. another kudos to anyone who can actually crack the cipher (it's not very hard tho). other than that, this is around when i started stalling in writing (aka getting lost from point A to point B) so this is basically where i need motivation!
> 
>  **old notes circa june 2017:** First, sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I was having some personal issues and they have just barely been resolved peacefully. This chapter isn't as long as I wanted it to be but I feel like this was what I wanted to say, even if it's so short. Also, just fyi, Brendan and May aren't actually bullying poor little Mike, he just doesn't know how to handle their personalities and he's too shy and awkward to say this to them. And sorry if the dream sequences are getting a bit too much, I love dream sequences and they'll play a big part of the story. If that isn't your cup of tea, then I will apologize in advance again.
> 
> Finally, as to the unintelligible garble at the beginning, it's a Caesar Cipher with a shift of—well, if I told you, that'd be no fun. :)


End file.
